Cestus Dea
by mkusenagi2
Summary: Chapters 9a is up.
1. Prolog

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Prolog

A Gathering of Ravens

January 26, 1945  
The Brzezinka Forest  
near the Zasole suburb of  
Oswiecim, Poland  
10 miles Northwest of  
Auschwitz II  
0230 hrs

"I know you guys would like ta wait 'til the Russians get here, but we've got our orders. We're crashin' this party an' we're gonna shut down HYDRA's operations here." said Sgt. Nick Fury to his unit the 1st Attack Squad aka The Howling Commandos.

Sgt. Nicholas Joseph Fury: A guy from Hell's Kitchen… following in his father's footsteps… a recipient of Berthold Sternberg's Infinity Formula… A man with a _personal_ grudge against ALL things Nazi.

Corporal Thaddeus Aloysius Cadwallander "Dum Dum" Dugan: former circus strongman. A redheaded, mustachioed bear of a man… with a conscience.

Private Gabriel Jones: a black man from Harlem, NY that wanted 'to do his part'.

Private Robert "Rebel" Ralston: a Sur'n boy that liked a good scrap.

Private Dino Manelli; a dark rogue of a smooth-talker from 'Little Italy'.

Private Isadore "Izzy" Cohen: A 'good' Jewish guy from the Bronx.

Private Percival "Pinky" Pinkerton: a bespectacled, beret wearing British soldier and decent chap. SOE… Special Operations Executive.

Private Eric Koenig: for his own reasons… a defector from Nazi Germany's Wermacht.

The men grumbled 'til Fury and Dum Dum gave 'em _that_ Look…

Eventually they managed to make their way through the forest…

Into the Zasole suburb…

And watched the Gates of Hell…

"Sir," Pvt. Eric Koenig whispered, "this is a place of great evil… and is one of the reasons I left the Nazi Wehrmacht." He finished as they watched the target from the forest. A man on a bicycle calmly rode by as the guards victimized those within…

The hair rose on the back of their necks as they watched civilians go about their day to day routine…

'How can ya do this?' Nick thought as they smelled… _it_. 'It's bad enough that I've been ordered to only focus on stoppin' Hydra's goons here… gotta _do_ somethin' ta help…' A staff car drove up to the personnel gate…

A flash of crimson was seen in the back…

Rage burned in Fury's soul. His jaw set.

"C'mon." Dum Dum whispered as they began to fade away… 'Don't do it Nick…'

'Another time Ratzi…' Nick vowed…

---

6-23-2007  
1200 hrs  
Present Day

"Begin the Operation…"

From random warehouses and buildings in…

Washington D.C. 1200 hrs 6-23-2007

To Maggia owned waterfront properties throughout…

New York, NY 1200 hrs 6-23-2007

To the docks of…

Hong Kong, 1200 hrs 6-23-2007

To the Limehouse district of…

London, England, 1200 hrs 6-23-2007

To the Go City Museum of Science and Industry and the Go Tower in…

Go City, CA, 1200 hrs 6-23-2007

To the worldwide holdings of Roxxon Oil…

And other points around the world… were being raided by agents dressed in black cowled, Kelly Green combat suits pouring out of stealthed VTOL transports. Chopin's Funeral March could be heard as they performed their grim tasks. After the complexes were stripped clean, the sites were leveled with plasma charges. Those that were taken prisoner soon learned new meanings for the word 'terror'…

6-23-2007…  
Condor 1 SHIELD Helicarrier  
currently hovering  
over New York, NY  
1200 hrs

"What the hell's goin' on people?!" roared Nick Fury on the bridge of the SHIELD Helicarrier, "Somethin' nasty's goin' down boys and girls, find out what the hell it is pronto! I want to know who's runnin' around drillin' these splinter cells from THEM, AIM, HYDRA, The Secret Empire and these other groups before we do, and _**I WANT TO KNOW YESTERDAY!**_"

"_**Sir**_, the attack on Manhattan Island seems to be centered on the southwestern Manhattan docks from 12th Ave. and W. 22nd St. to 10th Ave. and Bank St." said a C3I tech working the Board.

"Col. Fury, we're receiving reports that another attack is occurring at random locations in 'The District'. We've been asked to render assistance immediately!" stated another tech.

"_Where the HELL ARE the Avengers and the FF?_" Fury cried.

"They're on deep space missions Nick," said Col. Thaddeus 'Dum Dum' Dugan, "We don't know when they'll be back…"

'Great,' thought Fury, "MOVE US INTO POSITION 10 MILES FROM THE WARZONE, I NEED EVERY AVAILABLE VTOL DISPATCHED TO THE DISTRICT AND THE MANHATTAN WATERFRONT NOW!"

"Sir! I'm receiving a Priority A1 burst transmission from Go Tower," stated another C3I tech, "the transmission's got an 'Eyes Only' cipher!"

'Sheila!' Fury thought.

"Nick what's the problem? Whoever's doing this could be an ally or it could be a Government op," Dum Dum said as he sifted through the data at his station.

"The 'problem' Dum Dum, is that there AREN'T any ops scheduled against these guys yet except ours, and whoever's doin' this could be a new player," growled Fury. 'It's _him_…' "I'll take that transmission in my Ready Room and I want SatRecon on Go Tower…"

The SHIELD Ready Room…  
1215 hrs

Nick ran over to his station in the ready room, entered his codes and heard a woman's voice through the static, "SKKTTZZ… ick… KKTZTZ… tac…ZZZTZZKK… nerve… as… SKKTTZZTTTea… TZKK… Go Down… SSZXXXKKKTZZ… Help… Pulsar…"

"Where's my Damn SatRecon feed?!" Nick yelled over the comm.

"Sorry sir, we just got the link up… Holy…" said the tech over the com as… Go Tower disappeared in a flash of light.

"What the HELL was that soldier?" Fury asked.

"Sir, we just received data from the satellite that shows a high yield plasma bomb was set off inside Go Tower… No survivors…"

'They got 'er!' thought Fury, 'If these guys can take down someone as tough as Pulsar then we've got a SERIOUS problem… don't worry Darlin'… **_they'll pay_**…'

Fury re-entered the bridge 5 minutes later…

"Sir," said a technician, "we've got visuals on the Manhattan zone and we're picking up a strange transmission from the enemy troops!"

"What is it?" asked Fury.

"It sounds like music sir… I know this sounds strange but its Chopin's Funeral March!"

'It's him!' thought Fury, 'How…'

"Put the pics on screen, I wanna see 'em," growled Fury. Several troopers in Kelly Green stealth suits with black masks were seen running to and fro on the docks herding AIM technicians onto VTOL transports while other troopers were looting the buildings.

"Col. Fury sir, the first units are on site… sir they're taking a beating… the enemy's using plasma weaponry!"

"Tell 'em to pull back an' shell 'em, also tell 'em to keep the civvies away from the firefight as best they can." Fury said.

With a high whine turbines were revved up on the enemy transports in preparation for takeoff.

"Tell those men to get out of there NOW," roared Fury, "they're gonna slag the area!"

"RETREAT, RETREAT, RETREAT," yelled the Board techs into their mikes, "The Director has stated that ALL TROOPS ARE TO RETREAT! THE AREA IS GOING TO BE BOMBED BY THE ENEMY… I REPEAT…"

FLASH!!! There was a humungous roar that could be heard through the superstructure of the helicarrier as the plasma charges went off on the docks.

"…"

"How badly were we hit people?" Fury quietly said.

"Sir, we've acquired 20 percent casualties from flash burns… for starters…"

"Col. Fury sir," shouted a tech from the Lab division, "the bomb spectra indicates that the bombs used were based on stolen Stark International designs… some sort of mining charge!"

"Ladies and Gents we're at Defcon 1 until further notice. **_All_** SHIELD bases, helicarriers, and field operatives worldwide are on full alert. We're goin' ta war people!"

"Dum Dum, yer in charge until I get back," said Fury, "I'm gonna get us some help on this one, looks like we're gonna need it!"

A dark look passed over Dum Dum's face. "Them? Nick… they're… she's… Ron's…"

"I know. But if I don't tell 'em then she'll go off half cocked… an' as powerful as they are… even with their high trainin' an' powers… against _him_… it won't be enough." Anger/sorrow sat in his face. "We've kept 'er out of _that_ part of the loop long enough."

"Right." Dugan said. 'Poor kids…'

TBC


	2. Prelude

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Interlude

6-20-2007  
TP Base 1  
Mesa Verde National Park  
Montezuma County, CO  
1200 hrs

They practiced in meditation…

In the refurbished base that had been E.V.A.'s prison.

Wade and Rufus were astonished as they monitored the combat in The Arena…

Team Possible was practicing at preternatural levels of Speed and Power…

And were getting warmed up.

As their bodies threw blows, weaved around them, Tossed, turned, Retreated, and Came Forth…

_Team Possible sat in The Realm_…

_Meditating_.

_Watching future events unfold_…

_Worldwide_.

Until…

'After the War of the Gods… Transcendent Evil shall rise from the ashes of defeat… it shall attempt to eat the heart of the Multiverse… The Champion of ALL Life will Rise again… as the most humble of us… He Will be guided by the Soul of the Last Champion and by his Friends… when it is TIME the choice will HAVE to be made… IF the Champion succeeds… he will receive a GREAT GIFT…

The Evil shall rise again on his Homeworld… A Blue Demon will attempt to destroy men where they TRULY live… He will be aided by those that are servants of the Twisted One… to no avail…_**When the Root of Life trembles at the Twisted One's Touch… The Champion shall step forth and do battle to save his friends… If he SUCCEEDS he shall receive the great treasure he has fought for since The War Of The Gods… True Love.**_

_**If he fails… all shall die.**_**'** Burned before them.

The Essence was before them… as Durga… then Light.

'Would you lay down all you hold dear… to be my instrument… to prevent a great tragedy?' The Essence asked Sheila. 'A loss?'

She thought… about who she'd been… for good and ill… and who she now was.

She looked at her Loves…

'Yes.' Was etched in her whole being.

The Essence 'turned' to Kim. "Yes."

Ron. 'You needn't ask. You know my answer.'

'I am proud of you… my children.' It 'rose' over them.

A vision appeared. 'Before YOU existed… as Gods…' A scene popped up…

The Essence was in the midst of…

Creating The Multiverse!

A pulsing core of energy tore itself from the Essence and merged with the Monoblock… the SEED… as it exploded!

'You were my heart.' It said as Groucho from behind a startled Sheila and Kim, to Smirking Ron's amusement, 'And the secret woid is…'

The heart split into four segments… one scattered dusty fragments that turned into versions of…

Ron.

Another… Kim.

The other… Sheila.

The last… was the Judge.

The Chintamani stone.

They saw…

It had traveled Far and Wide…

It had found some 'verses to be worthy… 'verses like Blowback's (that called the Multiverse 'The Bleed').

And others… were… well… '_recycled_'.

The 1st 'verse had passed 'til.

The War of The Gods.

When humans that had been tainted by Mahisasura' essence touched it…

Only Hanuman's Challenge had spared all.

Now the Time nears…

The vision faded. They looked at Groucho as he faced them. Sheila peered and looked at Ron with a wink. 'The eyebrow's are real!' Kim gave them a wave of well humored seriousness…

The Essence touched each of them over their hearts…

A dusty rainbow whirled before them… a Communion of souls… that had evolved from the shards… _those_ Shards…

They struck!

Ron stood and freely accepted and merged with his selves… as did Kim and Sheila.

Sheila looked at The Essence.

They were ready.

Whatever the cost… He would be stopped.

---

The Skull smiled as he listened to a song that was closest to describing what he is…

_Yow! Yow! Yow!  
Umph, ca, umph, umph  
Please allow me to introduce myself  
I'm a man of wealth and taste  
I've been around for a long, long year  
Stole many a man's soul and fate_

He was a child of inconvenience.

_And I was 'round when Jesus Christ  
Had his moment of doubt and pain  
Made damn sure that Pilate  
Washed his hands and sealed his fate  
_

_Pleased to meet you  
Hope you guess my name  
But what's puzzling you  
Is the nature of my game_

A son of royalty. Heir to a fortune the likes of which few would understand.

A Bastard Rothschild. _A half Jew_.

His mother died in childbirth. His ne'er do well father cursed and beat him for it. He tried to drown him… and was saved by the Doctor that had birthed him.

Hate was his passion. Anger was the milk he was fed by life.

_Stuck around St. Petersburg  
When I saw it was a time for a change  
Killed the Czar and his ministers  
Anastasia screamed in vain_

_I rode a tank  
In a general's rank  
When the Blitzkrieg raged  
And the bodies stank_

_Pleased to meet you  
Hope you guess my name, oh yeah  
What's puzzling you  
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah_

It burned through his soul. It was it's voice. All are meat for his table. A flicker of something _old_ flushed his veins. Old and _evil_.

No Matter. He would make them pay.

And so he did. He began by stealing… and graduated to murder by choking to death one he'd thought he loved.

_I watched the gleam [Who, Who  
While you kings and queens  
Fought for ten decades  
For the Goth they made_

_I shouted out  
"Who killed the Kennedy's?"  
When after all  
It was you and me_

He committed whatever crime was necessary to survive. _Nothing_ was beneath him. Eventually he'd got a job at a hotel… as a foil for rape, robbery, and murder.

The staff were afraid of him… but he served a purpose for his corrupt Nazi employer.

He could find _Jews_. They were… A legal outlet for his lusts.

**Yet he hungered for one that would appreciate his twistedness**…

_Let me please introduce myself  
I'm a man of wealth and taste  
And I laid tracks for troubadours  
Who get killed before they reached Bombay_

_Pleased to meet you  
Hope you guess my name, oh yeah  
But what's puzzling you  
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah, get down, baby_

One day. He came to the hotel.

The Fuehrer.

Adolf Hitler.

_Ma, oo_

_Oooa_

He was ordered to bring him his tea.

He knocked on the door… The Fuehrer was screaming at someone. The Gestapo's commander… Himmler.

A General stiffly opened the door and rushed him in…

The year was 1939…

He made to leave…

The Fuehrer said, "Stay." He peered into his eyes… stunned and intimidated by the hell in them. "Your name boy."

"Johann Schmidt."

"Family?"

"I have none."

_Pleased to meet you  
Hope you guess my name, oh yeah  
But what's confusing you  
Is just the nature of my game_

Hitler looked at his command staff. He clasped his hand on the boy's shoulder. "I shall show you… ALL of you… _what I require and expect_… _I shall mold him_…" he pointed to Johannn… "Into the Perfect German Soldier… _My darkest reflection_… When I am done… he shall be the symbol of terror to our enemies…" Hitler pressed something into his hands.

It was a mask.

A red totenkopf… a red skull…

He looked at his new benefactor. One that did not loathe him. One who appreciated him.

One willing to make him more than he was.

In Hell… Mephisto screamed in agony.

The Essence dimmed for a bit.

The Multiverse writhed… subtly.

A few 'verses died… others _changed_.

Mahisasura had returned!

He put on the mask…

Johann Schmidt **died** that day…

_Just as every cop is a criminal  
And all the sinners Saints  
As I end this tale  
Just call me Lucifer  
'Cause I'm in need of some restraint_

_So if you meet me  
Have some courtesy  
Have some sympathy, and some taste  
Use all your well learned qualities  
Or I'll lay your soul to waste, um yeah_

The Red Skull was born.

His manifesto was made flesh.

Love… Compassion are weaknesses to be burned out. Terror is _ALL_.

All are unfit unless they strive towards his goal.

The Perfection of Evil Incarnate.

All, even mutants are to be murdered if found weak. They are barriers to The Master Race.

God is an affront to him… as is Mephisto. All are to die if they are Jewish… or inferior… a Demon… or a God.

Hitler grew secretly terrified of his 'son'… Limits… _he had none_.

He openly took over two thirds of the SS.

He wrested control of Eichmann from Hitler and oversaw the camps.

They were to be his Laboratory.

Arnim Zola and Baron Wolfgang von Strucker were secretly looked at as brothers.

Strucker was sent to Japan to learn the darkest arts Ninjutsu had to offer…

Zola was encouraged in his mad quest for genetic Godhood…

The camps would be the furnace that would spawn secrets… of Life and Death.

Zola's arcane knowledge of Ancient alchemical sciences would be the key.

Strucker would train the perfect warriors.

_Pleased to meet you  
Hope you guess my name, um yeah  
But what's puzzling you  
Is the nature of my game, um baby, get down_

_Woo, who  
Oh yeah, get on down  
Oh yeah  
Oh yeah!_

Through Zola's efforts; they already had the keys to longevity in their hands… and used them.

_Tell me baby, what's my name  
Tell me honey, baby guess my name  
Tell me baby, what's my name  
I tell you one time, you're to blame_

_Ooo, who  
Ooo, who  
Ooo, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who_

_Oh, yeah_

Now that he'd succeeded in creating artificial life… and had mastered the energy that was the soul to a certain degree (this was evident in the fact he'd designed a new body and placed his essence in it)…

And had partially cracked the chromatin matrix that ran the cell in humans…

Soon they would be able to create…

Whatever they'd need. For whatever purpose they'd desire.

And soon. Immortality would be in their reach.

Zemo… who had been voted the most reviled man in Europe… had been replaced.

But…

There was that accursed Imi Prystanek…

He was a _Jew_… Worse… a nam-shub. One whose words had _power_.

A good man. One that set his teeth on edge. One that had… Had…

Through their battles had…

Forgiven him. _HIM!_

…

And… _his abilities_…

He'd prevented the Skull from acquiring the Chintamani Stone… before his very eyes had given it to a _being not of this World_… Uatu the Watcher.

He'd vanished before his eyes…

The Skull dispatched an agent… armed with a powerful weapon.

The Spear had been used against him… to no effect. Imi had put The Spear to 'sleep'… and had given it back!

No matter. He had one thing he prized.

His family.

What was left of it.

His sister.

It had been a personal pleasure to oversee the tests on four of her five children as she was forced to watch…

A further pleasure to see her raped and humiliated by the Camp Commandant. A trifle for his meeting quota for Zola's research efforts.

_Materials_ had been harvested. Knowledge. She had broken and told him what little she'd known… before he'd shot her youngest.

Legends. Maps. Other things.

Once she broke… and told him about the hidden history of their people… as heirs to the knowledge of the ones before…

He shot the child. Its blood had splattered her…

She didn't cry. He'd emptied her.

However… She unnerved him. Broken as she was… She'd somehow _regained her spirit_… Hana Prystanek would _not_ become a slave. _She'd cursed him!_

She'd vowed that her blood would break him. One day. Break him. Only. Others… would taste Compassionate Wrath.

But him…

_B R O K E N_.

A tear formed in his black heart. Light shone in. Hanuman's.

He'd laughed to cover his fear.

She was thrown into a cage in Zola's prime lab. Forced to watch as he conducted his horrific experiments with the Ancients knowledge…

Knowledge she'd given them.

_What's me name  
Tell me, baby, what's my name  
Tell me, sweetie, what's my name_

Forced to watch as The Skull grew in power and knowledge of _himself_… _His Core!_

_Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who  
Ooo, who, who_

_Oh, yeah _

_Sympathy For The Devil  
The Stones  
Mick Jagger/Keith Richards  
Natalie Merchant Lyrics_

Pathetic she'd called him… no _**named**_ him.

The stereo shattered from his wrath.

'No matter. With what I have gleaned from my hidden memories… thanks to my accursed _brother_… I shall show her who shall be named _pathetic_… who will be _broken_.'

Laughter shattered the Night!

---

Based on a hunch… John Brimmstone and Athena prepare for what is to come…

As does Fu Manchu…

Demens…

And others.

End Interlude.


	3. Chapter 1: Keystone

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Chapter 1: Keystone

6-20-2007  
TP Base 1  
Mesa Verde National Park  
Montezuma County, CO  
The Arena  
1200 hrs

Darkness.

Sheila sat in their 'dojo', The Arena; clothed in her black gi, 10 jade pips on her left lapel … meditating.

Preparing for her part…

Poised between Taizoukai (the physical world) and Kongoukai (The Quantum Dream; raw reality)…

She stepped through into The Dream.

Her body was limned in Spiritual Fire.

Her eye opened.

She _saw_.

A gasp slipped through her lips…

-

The Essence whispered in her ear as the Drama unfolded… 'As this Universe grew… a new element was created… 'The Dream' was made accessible to ones such as yourself… Now 'lesser' beings have a chance to fight Gods on an equal footing… You are the fusion of what is Best and Worst in us…'

She motioned… 'Shhh…'

The Essence gently laughed in her ear as she saw the story unfold…

-

January 26, 1945  
The Brzezinka Forest  
near the Zasole suburb of  
Oswiecim, Poland  
1.5 miles Northwest of  
Auschwitz II  
0430 hrs

Nick and his men sat across smoldering coals from an odd man.

6' of lanky, towheaded, wry, yet sad humor…

Clothed in a camo Hassidic hat and coat.

"Uh… thanks for savin' us from that patrol back there… Mr.…?" Nick said. He was troubled by what he'd seen… The man was fast.

Horribly so.

Strong too.

"Rabbi Imi Prystanek at your service." He winked at Nick and waved at his men as he took off his hat. "I trust you and your friends are well?"

"Uh Yeah. We're ok. How…"

"Not to worry… Sgt Fury… at least for now." Nick's eyes squinted. "Oh yes… I know of you… and what's coming… We haven't much time… He thinks you've fallen for his trap."

"Trap?" Dum Dum asked.

"Yes. The Skull knows we are here… especially since that patrol is… gone. Not to worry, all is in hand."

"Lordy." Gabe Jones whispered. "How…?"

"I've been to the Far East…" Imi countered.

"Like The Shadow?" Izzy Cohen asked.

"Yes."

They stared at this harmless looking man…

All of them were stunned by what they'd seen.

An elite 20 man SS patrol had them surrounded when the Rabbi had mowed them down…

Men had been flung about.

Lives had been taken.

What had shocked them was when it was over…

He'd prayed for the men he'd killed.

"We must hurry for your mission to be a success. I have a map to the tunnels under the camp." Imi sighed as he pulled out a map. "As I said before he knows we're coming. The Skull allows escapes via these tunnels… to give prisoners a false sense of hope… and for his _experiments_…" Imi traced Mem in the air… a soft glow erupted from the letter to their stunned eyes. He looked at the startled men. "Not to worry. No one can see us or this light…"

-

To the north weather changed… mist and fog rose from the Earth…

Nazi and Russian troops passed each other…

-

"Nam shub." Dino Manelli said to Imi's surprise. Everyone stared at Dino. "A guy that's kinda like a Jewish magician…" he looked around. "What? One of my cousins _married_ one."

"Yes. He is right. I'm a Mage… of sorts. There are limits… We humbly work with God…" He winked at Dino. "Here's what I know. The Skull expects us to walk into his trap… but he doesn't know that it will be how do you say…"

"A trap, trap, trap." Koenig finished.

"Yes." Imi looked at them. "What you _don't_ know is that _all_ of them are there."

Dum Dum cracked his knuckles.

The men fidgeted.

Nick grit his teeth.

"I say. What the devil do you mean?" Pinky said as he twirled his umbrella.

"He means it's the best chance we have ta get rid of Strucker, Zola, And The Skull…" Fury growled.

"Correct. They… slipped past you using… other means." Imi's face grew hard as he leaned over and gripped Nick's arm. "Don't worry about your friends… I have taken precautions. The Red Army _will_ make it. We must hurry. Here's what I suggest…"

-

Saboteurs began to mine bridges, power lines, any hard target they could…

-

That was 3 hours ago…

Now they stood on a dais shackled before the Skull in his 'laboratory'…

All were shaken by what they saw.

The People…

Germans, Jews, GIs, Gypsies…

Victims all…

Flayed open, in deep shock from horrible pain…

Caged, strapped to exam tables, locked in glass cases on life support…

Monstrosities writhed inside electrified cages…

The disturbing thing was…

The lab was _clean_.

And at the center…

Sat a woman in a glass cage.

Untouched… on the surface…

_But her eyes told you_…

A flash of compassion between Imi and the woman.

Nick caught it.

In the midst of the space stood The Red Skull, dressed in olive coverall, boots, cigarette holder in his right.

Luger in his left.

"So. It ends here." The Skull said as Zola and Strucker walked in. "Anticlimactic no?" he grinned as he took a puff.

"No." Imi growled. The fingers of his right hand twirled as he spelled MRPI. 'God… help me. I hate him… what he's done…' A loving presence settled over him.

'_Wait._' He heard The Essence say. 'Let it _Go_.' He relaxed.

The Skull pointed at Imi. "_You._" Eyes narrowed. "For you I have something special planned… for giving The Stone to The Watcher…"

Zola's ESP box popped up a crackle was heard as a tendril of energy lashed over a control panel.

The floor rumbled open, a vat rose from within, contents bubbling.

"You shall become my tool _Juden_. You see before you the culmination of years of research." He glared at Imi. "You shall become my first Ubermensch… with you I shall destroy _all_ who oppose me."

"_NEVER!_" The woman shouted.

"Hana!" Imi cried as he stepped forward. "Be Still!"

Guards fastened his bonds to a cable and hoisted him over the vat.

"Fuckin' Ratzis…" Nick hissed. "When I get outta this…"

"Tut, tut, Nicholas. You are next." The Skull beamed. "That verdamnt Captain America and The Red Army are being kept occupied… no one can save you. The serum we've developed has some interesting qualities. Zola if you please?"

"With this material we can reshape you into whatever we wish…" he said as he checked readings. "A monster… or a slave."

"Like you can talk." Izzy quipped.

"Begin." The Skull.

"Clank. Clank. Clank." Nick and his men watched as Imi was lowered to the vat…

"WEEEEOOOOOO! BAM! BAM! BADAM!" Lights flickered as the building shook.

"VAS!" the Skull cried.

Sirens howled, men screamed, the crump of artillery was heard as the Red Army advanced on their position…

The Skull leapt forward and dragged Nick towards the vat…

Imi began to swing…

Keys were caught and passed around…

The Howlers broke free…

Strucker and Zola wrestled with the prisoners…

Imi began to bob and roll up and down the chain, a human yoyo…

Nick's face was forced near the bubbling mass…

"SNAP! CLINK! WHUNK!" Pressure disappeared as Nick rolled to the floor. Someone grabbed him…

An explosion…

Shrapnel…

Then darkness.

-

Sheila watched the tableau, shocked by what roiled inside the Skull's heart.

A rift blacker than Hell itself. A Cancer of Nonexistence.

Blight.

She 'hugged' The Essence to her…

-

Light.

"Nick?" he heard. "Nick… wake up." Dum Dum.

"Snap out of it old bean." Pinky.

"C'mon Sarge… wake up!" Rebel Ralston crowed.

"Alright already! I'm up! I'm up." Nick sat up.

He was on a cot… in a medic's tent.

Surrounded by the Howlers.

Imi lay on the cot next to his… chest covered in bandages. The blonde woman he'd seen earlier was holding his hand and weeping.

"Gee Sarge ya shoulda seen it!" Rebel said. "He saved ya."

"Durnedest thing I ever saw Sarge." Gabe said with open admiration. "He rolled up and down that chain… snapped it like it was nothin', kicked The Skull offa ya… an'…"

"Shut it ya galoots!" his gaze rested on this man…

One of his own.

Somehow… he made it to his side.

Eyes flickered open. "Are you ok… my friend?" Imi grit out.

Mist… a tiny bit… formed in Nick's eyes. "Yeah. Thanks."

"Good." Imi grimaced. "They got away. Heh. Through the tunnels…"

Someone entered the tent.

A lantern jawed Russian with brutal eyes.

"So sorry… I am Major Leonov of the NKVD… I have a warrant for the arrest of this man for sedition…"

Everyone turned towards him. "He's a Howler. One o' mine." Nick rose and leaned into Leonov's space. "If ya got a problem with that take it up with yer boss… Uncle Joe."

Leonov paled. "I have my orders."

"Clack!" a hammer was cocked. "Tell yer general that Nick Fury says 'hi'. That man ain't goin' anywhere 'cept the old US of A. GOT IT?"

The major's eyes danced around the room.

Leonov's jaw set. "Da." He stormed out.

"Pinky." Fury growled.

"Sir?"

"Get on the horn. Tell Churchill ta get things movin' so's we can get out of here… Yesterday."

"Yes Sir!"

"Thank You." The woman wept.

"I'm sorry my friend, this is my sister… Hana." Imi sat up and clasped Nick's hand.

Nick looked at this man…

"Why?"

"You are a good man. My heart knows this. Could I do no less?" Imi smiled goofily.

"I owe ya… big."

"It's alright."

"The doctors said he'll be fine even though he got doused in that serum… and hit by shrapnel…" Hana said. "It's a miracle. Thank You for saving us." She looked fondly at her brother. "Imi's… been outspoken about Stalin's… way… especially since our friends and family died in the gulag."

Nick grinned. "As long as I live… I'll do what I can. Ya got my word." A tear ran. "Bro."

"Thank You." Imi passed out in Hana's arms.

"Whoa!" Rebel whispered.

"KP fer Life fer the lot o' ya if one word gets out…" Nick glared. "Dum Dum, get a truck. We gotta get outta here. Much as the Russkie're 'posed ta be on our side, I got a feelin'."

"Right Nick."

Nick stared at one of the bravest souls he'd ever seen…

Brave as Cap… _if not braver_.

He'd made a promise.

Now it was time to keep it.

-

Sheila and The Essence flickered through the years…

She was allowed to feel what the Skull had done to _millions_…

And was allowed to see it's affects across the Multiverse.

-

She also got to see how much Nick had done for them as well…

And was shamed by her failures.

'It is alright Daughter. You Are Forgiven.' The Essence said to her heart.

Still…

She wept…

For herself and others…

Eventually they came to the present…

Time was a roiling cloud of Chaos.

'It is up to you now.'

Questions sat in her eyes.

'This IS what you face… a being with the Soul of a God… and the Heart of a Demon…' The Essence said as she rose to leave… shaken by what she'd seen… "MY Fate… _All of us_… are in your hands.'

She stood.

Humbled.

'do your best…'

-

Sheila found herself in the dojo.

She wiped her face…

And…

Began to steel herself… to prepare.

-

6-23-2007  
Go Tower  
Go City, CA  
1210 hrs

Wormholes crackled into existence.

Hulkbuster gas was released into Go Tower as HYDRA troops poured in.

A helmed Strucker saw Sheila as she ducked around a corner.

He pursued her.

'Gotta flash Nick a warning!' she thought as she slapped the alert, sensed dulled by the gas. "Nick, The base is under attack… from HYDRA troops!"

Her powers sank.

A concussion grenade rolled by her left foot.

She leapt right.

Pain!

-

6-23-2007  
TP Base 1  
Kim's quarters  
1210 hrs

Kim and Ron gasped and staggered, yet held fast, lending their strength to their beloved.

They looked grimly at each other…

The Contest had begun.

-

Strucker leered at Sheila's broken form…

A glow formed as she began to heal.

"Quickly! Mach Schnell!" he roared as troops shoved her into a cryotube. "Are they alive?"

"Yes Mein Herr, and 'collected'." A trooper cried as they hauled her through the gate.

A silver sphere rolled through as the last trooper entered…

-

Open to what could happen…

Sheila segued to The Realm, embraced by the Essence's strength.

In The Realm, knowing she could die; she smiles as The Essence sits with her.

---

Based on what her human friends would call a 'hunch'…

A warrior and friend of the Xmen…

Prepares.

Lilandra Neramani is coming to Earth…

To help her friends…

Kim, Ron, and Sheila.

And with her…

Are volunteers from the Shi'ar Imperial Guard.

TBC


	4. Chapter 2: Camaraderie

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Chapter 2: Camaraderie

6-23-2007  
SHIELD 1  
In transit to TP Base 1  
1548 hrs

Somewhere over Wyoming…

Nicholas Joseph Fury stared unseeingly at the rushing terrain while his newest aide quietly flew them to their destination…

'I wish ya were here ya old Jew…' he smiled as he thought about one of his dearest friends and allies…

Imi Prystanek.

'Damn. Why'd I haveta live… everyone I love… Damned Ratzi Infinity Formula…' his eyes drooped. 'You'd be proud of 'im Imi… Ron's just as gutsy as you were… _if not more so_…' he grinned. 'Not ta mention Kim… and Sheila's effects on them both… I think you'd like the girls…' his head nodded…

He fell asleep as they tore through the clouds.

-

Monique Jenkins sat watching Nick out of the corner of her eye as she multi-tasked… She found it amazing that she'd been able to get a handle on things so quickly… even with her new abilities…

Such as being able to tap into nearly all of her neural and physical potential…

And being trusted and encouraged by… Ron's _Uncle_ no less. Admittedly Ron was a goof… but who'd have thought he'd be able to keep such a secret from them all these years…

The Leader of The Free World's Best Hope against The Red Skull…

Nick Fury…

_Was Ron's Uncle Nick_.

She thought about all the times Ron had run off with him… and how he'd just blown it off… He'd said he was just 'Hangin' with his favorite Unc a 'little'… About how he'd said Nick was an old war Vet's, war Vet.

But _this_…

She'd been ashamed of her surviving Drakken's Plague… what it'd done to her, 'til Ron had sat and talked to her… told her they needed her… kept her from going over the brink.

Then Nick stepped in after she'd promised to work harder… He'd challenged her to do her best while she recuperated in Condor 1's Sick Bay. Nick told her that Ron spoke up for her…

When Monique was released.

She signed up.

She smiled at the thought of Ron speaking up for her with his serious face… and chuckled.

'Boy, what'd you get me into… I'll never be able to live this down…' the Mocha beauty turned and looked at her dozing boss and silently cursed her luck… he was a hottie… taken… and she wasn't _old_ enough…

She'd always had bad luck with men…

She sighed… then thought about someone that'd talked to her at her lowest point ever…

-

4-05-2007  
Condor 1's Mess  
1235 hrs

Monique sat at a table doodling on a napkin… ticked at Col. Fury for 'leanin' on her harder than usual… _even though she'd__ passed her final test in the Practice Room_.

A shadow fell over her.

"May I have this seat?" A mellow voice asked. Monique looked into the eyes of a quietly striking ebony man. Wilson was stenciled on the left breast of his SHIELD suit.

"Sure." She mumbled as she slumped onto the table, pushing her tray down its length.

"What's the matter?" he asked as he dug into his meal.

"Nothin'." She lay her head on the table and looked away from her new 'friend'.

"Say! Weren't you in that batch of trainees that just graduated today?" he said while chewing his chipped beef.

"Yeah." she turned her head to look at him. "Why?"

He smiled as he stared into space. "No reason. Just thinkin' about_ my time_ is all. Nick ordered me to retrain after… I turned myself in… had some trouble with the law… he'd gone to bat for me…"

Monique sat up and looked warily at Wilson. "Oh? What'd you do?"

"I was… a dealer in another life… Someone 'helped' me, set me up for failure in the process. I managed to keep 'em from usin' me to hurt my best friend. I told Nick and the authorities… he helped me get on track…" Wilson laughed. "I almost quit… Nick was harder than the SHIELD drills…"

"He's… so _mean_."

"Nah. Just hard… especially on the ones he cares about… like Ron…"

Monique stared. 'Who _are_ you? God why me?'

"And his friends…" he grew somber. "He's lost a _lot_ of friends over the years… Nick's taken it personally… knows he shouldn't… but he does." Years of pain and sorrow ran across his face.

His eyes rested on her. "He just wants what's best for ya. You're one of the luckiest folks in the World to have him as a friend." He gulped down his ice cold coffee, picked up his tray and rose. "Good luck Monique. I'm sure you'll do ok." He left.

"Uh. Bye." She said, confused…

Her eyes drifted across the table… and hung on a picture that sat where he'd been.

She picked it up.

And was shocked at what she saw!

There he stood in a red, white, and gold winged costume standing next to Captain America…

And Nick Fury, with his cowl off!

The Falcon!

She turned it over and read the back…

Mon smiled and slid the picture into her pocket.

He was right. She'd work on doing better. No. She'd work on doing her _best!_

_For all their sakes_.

-

Monique tapped SHIELD 1's joystick, waking her boss in the process.

A call popped up on Fury's link. A holo formed showing Avengers Mansion and a heavily Armored… Warrior. "Yeah War Machine?" Nick groused.

"Sorry Col. Just called in ta say thanks. We'll be ready when ya need us." He drawled.

"Yer welcome. This one's gonna be a doozy. We're gonna haveta be ready ta pull out all the stops on this one." 'That bastard's gonna do his damndest…"

"Yes Sir Colonel. Dobbs…" Nick frowned. "Uh heh. War Machine out." He said with a snappy salute and a 'clank!'. Monique grinned.

Nick caught it. "Sorry Sir." She frowned in thought.

"What's on yer mind lady?"

"Ron. … What he did for me… us… everything…"

To Monique's surprise Nick grinned from ear to ear. "When ya least expect it… guys like Ron'll come through for ya." He grinned around his cigar as she hailed TP Base's tower.

Nick's mused over Ron's growth as he listened to Monique talk to Nan. He grit his teeth over how these kids have had to grow in this damaged world that he's tried to protect.

"Sir?" the mocha beauty asked as they touched down.

"Right. Let's get this over with." He grunted.

She squeezed his shoulder and winked.

Nick grew wooden…

Then smiled back.

-

She rubbed the right thigh pocket that held her ID and Wilson's photo.

'_Mon. The Skull doesn't always win.'_

_Sam 'Snap' Wilson_

-

_Down around the corner  
A half a mile from here  
You can see them long trains run  
And you watch them disappear  
Without love  
Where would you be now  
Without love_

_You know I saw miss Lucy  
Down along the tracks  
She lost her home and her family  
And she wont be comin' back  
Without love  
Where would you be right now  
Without love_

_Well the Illinois central  
And the southern central freight  
Gotta keep on pushin' mama  
cause you know they're runnin' late  
Without love  
Where would you be now - now, now, now  
Without love_

_Well the pistons keep on churnin'  
And the wheels go round and round  
And the steel rails are cold and hard  
For the miles that they go down  
Without love  
Where would you be right now  
Without love  
Where would you be now_

_Long Train Runnin'  
Doobie Bros_

TBC


	5. Chapter 3: Red Right Hand

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Chapter 3: Red Right Hand

Meanwhile as Nick and Monique prepared to meet Team Possible…

-

6-23-2007  
HYDRAbase  
The Island of The Exiles  
Off the Brazilian Coast  
Lab Omega  
1520 hrs

Chrome.

Enamel.

Terror.

An ultra-modern lab…

Blood dripped down a monster's chin as he finished swallowing the last piece of a heart…

Corpses were strewn about a centerpiece…

A sensory deprivation tank.

Savagery cast against a background of surgical precision.

_His eyes blazed with dark FIRE!_

AIM techs furtively ran about making preparations… praying they wouldn't be next…

Clad in a pressure suit covered in glowing runes; bloody splatters on the material were absorbed by said runes as they writhed across…

Empowered and emboldened…

The Red Skull prepared to meet his destiny as a man he considered a brother watched.

Baron Wolfgang von Strucker.

Dressed for the occasion in SS black. Swastika band emblazoned with The Skull's grinning visage.

'_It is time… Finally he embraces his Destiny… Johann was always capable of more… compared to our accursed Fuehrer… Hate Monger indeed. He is a pale imitation of what he was as the Fuehrer… Johann has _always_ sought and worked on becoming more… One such as he turns mere depravity into an Artform! Now all will tremble as his influence grows… all will be crushed under our might!_' Strucker thought as he stood drunk with murderous lust and terror… sweat beaded on his bald pate… '_This reminds me of when we_ had _that verdamnt Fury in our grasp…'_ jaw muscles clenched as he relived their failure, '_no matter... that accursed Imi Prystanek is gone…_' he grinned. '_by my hand. Soon his great-grandson…_'

For many years, after countless 'setbacks'… they were _ready!_

Now.

Now all of Zola's work would pay off. With Ron's and Team Go's DNA fused to his own…

The Ubermench sera in his veins…

The Hand and Strucker's training…

And by using the Ebontome to awaken his Dark Potential further…

Victory over _all_, was in reach…

"Begin the test." The Skull entered the tank. "Tell me the results after my session."

"Jawohl." Strucker said.

As Strucker made to leave… "Wolfgang. I want you to personally oversee our 'transition'. The new base must be operational when we arrive. Our 'client' has outlived his 'usefulness'. See to it that he's silenced. Make sure the Maggia takes the blame. He must not be allowed to talk to that _Verdamnt_ Fury _or_ Captain America!"

"I will." Strucker smiled as his fingers ran over a newly rehealed scar on the left side of his face. 'After this task is done, I shall personally see to Ms. Tozai for her treachery… and give Frau Possible a gift…'

"Also see to it that our 'employee' is executed for his treachery."

"It shall be my pleasure."

-

_Take a little walk to the edge of town  
Go across the tracks  
Where the viaduct looms,  
like a bird of doom  
As it shifts and cracks  
Where secrets lie in the border fires,  
in the humming wires  
Hey man, you know  
you're never coming back  
Past the square, past the bridge,  
past the mills, past the stacks  
On a gathering storm comes  
a tall handsome man  
In a dusty black coat with  
a red right hand_

_He'll wrap you in his arms,  
tell you that you've been a good boy  
He'll rekindle all the dreams  
it took you a lifetime to destroy  
He'll reach deep into the hole,  
heal your shrinking soul_

_But there won't be a single thing that you can do  
He's a god, he's a man,  
he's a ghost, he's a guru  
They're whispering his name  
through this disappearing land  
But hidden in his coat  
is a red right hand_

_You don't got no money?  
He'll get you some  
You don't got no car? He'll get you one  
You don't got no self-respect,  
you feel like an insect  
Well don't you worry buddy,  
cause here he comes  
Through the ghettos and the barrio  
and the bowery and the slum  
His shadow is cast wherever he stands  
Stacks of green paper in his  
red right hand_

_Organ solo_

_You'll see him in your nightmares,  
you'll see him in your dreams  
He'll appear out of nowhere but  
he _ain't_ what he seems  
You'll see him in your head,  
on the TV screen  
And hey buddy, I'm warning  
you to turn it off  
He's a ghost, he's a god,  
he's a man, he's a guru  
You're one microscopic cog  
in his catastrophic plan  
Designed and directed by  
his red right hand_

_Organ solo_

_Extra verse from DJ Spooky Remix (From Scream 2 Soundtrack):  
He'll extend his hand, real slowly for a shake  
You'll see it coming toward you, real slowly for a shake  
(Grabbing at your peril buddy?) cause you know you ain't  
getting near much as he will take._

_He's a ghost, he's a god,  
he's a man, he's a guru  
You're one microscopic cog  
in his catastrophic plan  
Designed and directed by  
his talkin' red right hand_

_He's mumbling words you can't understand  
He's mumbling words behind his red right hand_

_Red Right Hand  
Nick Cave and The Seeds_

_TBC_


	6. Chapter 4: an interlude

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

An interlude…

6-25-2007  
New HYDRAbase  
Medlab 1  
0520 hrs

The Red Skull watched as AIM techs finished their tests as Strucker snarled at them…

"Are you veruckt? Schwinehund!" he growled as they finished installing his new Satan's Claw.

Sweat rolled across his pate.

'I shall give you reason, soon enough… for defying my will…' The Skull thought as a tech unclipped the last lead, and the prosthesis sealed itself.

Strucker looked at his brother as he flexed his new right hand. "One day that accursed Magneto shall suffer by my hand for what he's done. The original was but a toy… that mutant filth made it a necessity… when he crushed my hand within, those years ago…" A grimace slid across his face, The Skull nodded to a tech, a switch was flipped… "Unglaublish! It feels like my old hand!" he grinned.

"Focus my dear Strucker." The Skull said.

He did. The Claw changed it's appearance from a normal looking hand to it's real form… a scarlet talon of Death.

"This new claw will deliver a scrambler pulse that will stun Rhino himself!" The Skull exclaimed as Strucker sat up and marveled at the natural feel. "We 'adapted' Stark's Flowmetal™ technology." A tendril of Ebon slithered across the floor and brushed against a tech's leg… ash wafted through the air as the rest stood terrified… "You may go."

They beat a hasty retreat at The Skull focused his gaze on Strucker. "How long have we known each other… Wolfgang?"

"Decades."

"_I have been working on this project since He gave me the tools_…" A cage of Black Fire writhed around Strucker. "Your single action has cost me!"

"It has to be done… she's been…"

"Silence." The Ebon Flames flowed into the Claw and vanished. "I would have approved of your actions… provided we could have timed them properly… I will brook interference no more…"

pain…

indescribable…

Strucker silently screamed as blooms of rust flowered over his new hand.

The Skull calmly gazed into his eyes.

That is… what he _truly was did_…

"To crush her… we must threaten what she holds most dear… _The World_…_**Not engage in petty murder**_… For her this battle was an abstract…" pain increased… "_Now it's concrete_."

The pain… stopped.

His hand was whole!

"Your assassins were wiped out by Sensei. Tozai is safe." The closest thing The Skull knew to love and loss ran through him. "Crossbones and Mother Superior… my daughter _are no more_ due to _your_ incompetence!"

"I am sorry… Mein Herr."

"Do not worry. All shall be lost." The Skull smiled… "You live because I need you."

Strucker shuddered.

-

'This just in… Financial markets are in a tailspin to say the least… at the news we've received!' a newscaster announced, 'all resource shipments from the so called 'Third World' have been halted… A new Bloc has formed…' terror swam across him. 'That states it owes allegiance to one person only!'

'The Red Skull!'

Demonic laughter rang as he crushed the World's economy in his steely grip.

TBC


	7. Chapter 5: First Strike

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

First Strike… ;D

6-23-2007  
357 Tyndall Ave  
Nellis AFB  
Las Vegas, NV  
1548 hrs

"RRRRUUMMMBLLLLEEEEE!"

The ground shook as a five new versions of past terrors awakened under the base's suburbs…

Five Terrors…

100 feet of Horrendous Destruction apiece…

Sleepers.

Terrors modeled after the Hydra, Manticore, Chimera, Cyclops, and Harpy.

The Nazi War machine's answer to the Golem… Nearly indestructible dreadnoughts designed to do two things…

Instill Terror…

And murder the innocent.

All bore The Skull's mark… his visage.

They clawed their way to the surface and wreaked havoc…

Base personnel evacuated what few survivors there were as they attempted to fight back…

Slaying all in their path…

As they made their way towards…

-

Caesars' Palace  
3999 Las Vegas Blvd  
Las Vegas, NV  
1550 hrs

The man known to the World as Sinclair Abbott, Entrepreneur and Bon Vivant; and to The Community as Spymaster…

Was enjoying his newfound freedom.

'Man! Who'da thought I'd get such a rush being one of the good guys!' Spymaster thought as he made his way through the crowds on the gambling floor. 'It's a shame I can't stay to play.' He thought while eyeing a hostess as he fingered Stark's newest toy; a 'Molecular Suit'. 'Love the toys. Damnit… If I'd done this years ago…' he paused and ran through several scenarios, 'He knows. The Skull's _gotta_… _It's what I'd do_… suspect everybody… gonna have to get this intel to Nick, and soon.'

Presently he was 'dressed' in a Navy Armani suit, and had disguised himself as a middle aged African American.

A flicker of movement to the left caught his eye…

'Taka!'

An alarm went off! The air raid siren! Hirotaka stared pointedly at Spymaster and wove away from him through the crowd. 'Where's he going?' He followed, thinking about the different events that were being held in the casino…

His blood ran cold.

The Cuban Premier (a 'man without a past', named 'El Jefe') was here negotiating a trade agreement with the President's Secretary of State (a certain Southern Senator that had been outspoken in the past about Japan's cracks about the US…)…

Said Premier was posing as his own nephew, and was willing to convert his country to democracy. It was said in certain circles that 'El Jefe' was willing to share vital data with members of The Community…

'That means he's willing to…' gears clicked into place as he saw what was going on. He slipped a link into his ear and listened. Everything from Police to Military was jammed with traffic.

Something was coming this way.

Five BIG somethings…

_He knew they were after him_…

And '_El Jefe_'!

He listened to the reports that described huge robots that were leveling everything in their path, The Avengers were on their way with Cap spearheading them…

But they'd be too late.

He grinned as he hit his chicken switch, and turned on his Ghost unit. 'Let's see.'

Spymaster closed his eyes, dropped a flashbang, tapped his belt and transformed into his old gold cowled, blue suit.

The crowd surged and retreated giving him the break he needed. Mindful of the screaming beast the crowd had become, he sank through the floor and slogged his way towards the Conference Center. He slid up a wall and slithered onto the second floor in time to see the Secret Service evacuate the Secretary of State. El Jefe's men followed close behind…

"BAM!" two HYDRA Gamma Teams surged through the service corridors and slaughtered The Cuban leader's bodyguards in an attempt to slay him…

While completely ignoring the Secretary of State…

A blur of motion was seen as 'Taka and five of his men clove the teams…

Spymaster ran through the firefight and snatched Jefe's arm, yanking him around a corner…

They ran through several rooms via their walls to the dictator's shock, until they bolted through the Wedding Services…

Fell onto the VIP Porte Cochere's lawn…

Jumped into (Jefe was thrown) a Mercedes Alpha Spider XT, and burned rubber.

"WHO ARE YOU?" The dictator screamed as he was flung about as they tore through traffic.

"Spymaster." Jefe shrank. "Something's coming for _us_. Hold on." He waved for silence. "Got a call coming in…" 'Gotta admit. That wasn't too bad… and I didn't have to shoot anyone…' His link fed the call to him, "Hattori Hanzo to One Eyed Jack. The package's ok for now…"

-

Meanwhile other personages listened in and readied their troops for battle…

Enter the Thunderbolts…

TBC


	8. Chapter 6: Second Strike

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Thank God for The Animals…

_There is a house in New Orleans  
They call the Rising Sun  
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy  
And God I know I'm one_

_My mother was a tailor  
She sewed my new bluejeans  
My father was a gamblin' man  
Down in New Orleans_

_Now the only thing a gambler needs  
Is a suitcase and trunk  
And the only time he's satisfied  
Is when he's on a drunk_

_-- organ solo --_

_Oh mother tell your children  
Not to do what I have done  
Spend your lives in sin and misery  
In the House of the Rising Sun_

_Well, I got one foot on the platform  
The other foot on the train  
I'm goin' back to New Orleans  
To wear that ball and chain_

_Well, there is a house in New Orleans  
They call the Rising Sun  
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy  
And God I know I'm one_

_House Of The Rising Sun  
The Animals_

Chapter 6: Second Strike

At that same time…

6-23-2007  
The Palermo Boutique Hotel  
1551 Acuna De Figeroa  
Buenos Aires, Argentina  
1548 hrs

A broadcast was heard and seen around the World…

"…I repeat this is Summer Gale with breaking news… The Red Skull's… (who offered this reporter this exclusive)" "BOOOM! KrACk!" the sounds of war raged in the background, "…troops have taken the infamous Hatemonger hostage after a pitched battle at this hotel…" a camera panned a hallway as HYDRA troops dragged The Skull's captive into the street…

The black hooded figure was thrown into the street…

The Skull, clad in his old green Nazi jumpsuit, whipped out a Luger and "BLAM!" shot the Hatemonger between the eyes to Summer's visible shock as the camera panned back and forth…

"…ohgodohgodohgod…" was heard before she collected herself, "…wait… what was that?" she cried as they zoomed in and saw the Hatemonger's mask removed…

Hitler's face was revealed as…

"There is only ONE true vision of The Reich…" The Skull howled in triumph! "MINE!"

A blade flashed in hand…

A head tumbled…

A flash was seen as…

-

6-23-2007  
The Triskelion  
At present 25 miles south  
of Manhattan Island…  
1600 hrs

The Skull and his troops stood triumphantly on the steps before the shocked SHIELD personnel as he tossed the head before them. The Hatemonger's troops writhed in their midst wrapped in eldritch tendrils of Shadowfire…!

Summer and her crew were with them filming…

"A bauble. Prepare Amerikaner Schwine." He said. "Fury is next."

With a flash he was gone.

-

Summer and her crew stood… stunned as they were surrounded by SHIELD troops…

-

6-23-2007  
The Blue Area of the Moon  
The Home of  
Uatu the Watcher  
1601 hrs

Uatu felt a blast of something he'd not felt in Eons…

Pain!

Feeling dread (another sensation foreign to him for ages) he attempted to :SLIDE: to his reliquary… to find his way …BLOCKED?!

For the first time in millenia… He ran…

Only to arrive and see…

The Skull as he completed devouring the last of his prisoners as his men stood guard…

As he strode forward…

Took from a shielded case designed to withstand a nova…

A stone filigreed with lines of white and ebon Soulfire.

The Chintamani Stone.

"Ah. Gut. You are in time to see my triumph." He said as the Stone turned _gray_ in his grasp before he placed it back on its pedestal. "My victory is complete." He hissed as he met the Watcher's height.

His troops grew nervous as anger was seen on Uatu's face. "You…"

"SILENCE!" The Skull roared. "You are vowed to not interfere, even til point of your own Death. Have a care." '_It's NOT enough… something…_'

He and his minions vanished.

--

6-25-2007  
New HYDRAbase 1  
Somewhere…  
1548 hrs

Sheila sat in her prison… alive…

Meditating on her capture… Warmth filled her as The Essence sat with her…

Her powers subtly magnified…

Due to her… _faith_.

Silently she watched over her brothers as they lay in their tubes…

-

An AIM tech spoke to Zola in Bio Lab 1, "Sir. Pulsar's cryotube isn't working… Properly."

"What!" crackled from his frame. "Explain. NOW!"

The terrified AIM tech quivered, "Uh… she's registering unusual brainwave activity… and her powers aren't dormant… we've also seen her looking at us… her readings are going off the scale… but we don't know where the energy's going… several men have said they've been getting ill too… radiation poisoning…"

Zola stomped over to her tube… and checked the vitals…

They seemed normal.

He turned to one of the Wegos, "Begin viv… SHHHRACT!" A bolt of plasma erupted from her tube and shattered his ESP box.

Frightened techs grabbed him and the samples they'd collected, evacuated the lab and sealed it…

-

A terrified tech stood before The Skull…

In the charnel pit that was his office.

Strucker looked on smiling.

"Mein Herr… we…he may not make it…" he flinched as Shadowfire coursed through his veins. "…we were able to complete our scans… enough data was collected… …acght… for you to duplicate her powers…"

"Wunderbar." He said as the tech was consumed. "This may give us the edge we need to prevent further difficulties." He looked at Strucker. "Collect your… _agent_. An example must be made."

"Jawohl."

--

Earlier…

6-23-2007TP Base 1  
Mesa Verde National Park  
Montezuma County, CO  
1600 hrs

Nick Fury stared at his nephew and his Lady as they sat at the meeting table as his link squawked in his ear…

Bodies aglow in blue fire.

Ron gazed at Nick… _the way Imi used to!_ "You know what 'soul' means in ancient Hebrew right?"

Kim frowned. "Ron…" Shielded ('What's he up to? Ever since Sheila was taken…') she mentally sighed. ('You'd think the rapport with The Essence would be enough to calm him down… Knowing she's alive and mostly unharmed… He's _changed_… _WHAT THE?_')

Kim was shaken to silence as she was allowed to watch through Fury's eyes…

"Yeah." Nick frowned as he replied. "Imagination."

"Yeah." Ron smiled as he eased back in his seat. Epochs tumbled through the room as…

-

Nick was thrown back in time as he listened to _Ron and Imi_ as they said the same thing…

Imi and the Howlers crept through the maze of tunnels under Auschwitz. Cul de sacs and traps were everywhere. The only way one could get through was by knowing the way.

When asked, Imi said he didn't have nor needed a map… _he just knew the way_.

'Ron's 'dumb skills'!' Kim thought.

"We get our inspiration from The Name… It whispers to us as we walk our path…" Imi said as he, Nick, and the Howlers were making their way through the maze towards The Skull's lab. Fiery script led the way as they spoke of many things…

The Howlers could _feel_ it as they wound through the tunnels…

Death…

They silently gagged, knowing what was above… knowing they wouldn't be able to stop it… knowing that there were innocent people being tortured and murdered overhead…

Gagging because they knew they'd have to leave them behind…

And silently angry and ashamed they hadn't done enough.

_Nothing_ they had done would be enough.

And…

They knew the crazy Jew that was with them felt and knew it too.

Each knew it would haunt them for the rest of their lives…

And each knew they'd do their best to live in defiance of such a one as The Skull…

A gentle presence filled their hearts… buoyed them up…

Imi's smile of gratitude…

They came to a halt…

"All that matters is that we do our best to stop this…" Imi said as they gathered strength… from each other…

And a faith in _something_ that was better…

_There had to be… just had to be!_ Right?

As if he heard their thoughts… Imi nodded '_yes._'

"And live for those lost." He finished.

Onward. Resolve strengthened.

Onward through tunnels carved out by those who were physically too weak to work for their slavemasters… yet found strength to fight on…

"My friend… we all have our parts to play in this battle we call life. All must answer for their deeds whether they live with the Bright face, Dark, or the Realm between…" Imi's eyes crinkled with hard won humor. "Hitler, The Skull… have decided to listen to something darker than the heart of the _twisted one_ himself…" He gathered strength as the Howlers listened, spellbound; as an Elder taught. "Their hearts."

"Jesus." Gabe.

"Saints Be." Dum Dum.

"Gee." Reb.

"I Say!" Pinky.

"Sick, evil…" Izzy.

"Schwinehunds!" Koenig.

"Damn!" Dino.

"Quiet ya galoots!" Nick said as he ducked a beam. 'God help us.'

"Sadly… their evil is looked by those who live around the camp… as nothing." Imi sadly said. "It is looked at as a commonplace thing… a trifle. Does that make them as evil?" he shook himself as the Howlers grit their teeth.

They entered a space hewn from the soil. A trapdoor led up. "Our new path begins here." Imi said as he pulled out a flashlight. "Even I… with the powers I am allowed to use… have my limits."

"I say what do you mean?" Pinky asked as they checked their weapons.

"He means he could die here, too." Dino said. "You coulda walked away… Let us use a map or sumptin'."

Imi nodded. "Where we stand… what we're about to do… will affect many things. I couldn't… _can't_ let you face this alone." He turned to Nick. "On the other side… _is something worse than Hell_. Are you ready?"

They nodded.

A chill ran down Nick's spine.

-

Fury _stared_ at them… 'they've got that age thing about 'em…' he thought, "Like _Thor_ does.'

A wave of despair and weariness tore through him. 'Damnit! Kids like them're supposed ta be moonin after each other… not lookin', feelin', an' thinkin' about things like this…'

"The rest we know." A teary Kim said; eyes full of sorrow and understanding for this man she barely knew. That _most_ barely knew.

A hero.

Ron gave Nick a sad, yet goofy grin.

"You were chosen Unc… you've just _begun_ to tap what you've got to offer… don't give up… we _need_ you…" Ron gave Kim a swift glance. "ALL of us…"

--

'Ron… Kim… god help me…' Sheila Goble thought as she gave her all… 'I love you so much… help me…'

--

_**They lent what strength they could to her effort**_…

--

Sheila remembered a song…

_Darling you were looking good  
When you came to me  
And asked for a dance  
And I said,"We can dance."  
I felt like a Queen  
Swedish summer nights are hot  
And the trees can talk  
We lay on the grass  
So easily, so blessed  
Whispers in blindness  
And I didn't hold you back_

_I'm talking about it (babe)  
'Cause you've been teasing me_

_I'm talking about it  
'Cause you are bad right through  
_

It became her personal anthem…

_Stay with me, I shall want no other love  
Stay with me another love another lie  
Stay with me and I shall want no other love  
And You were talking so sweet  
But you were touching and teasing_

_I can hear the soft bells ring  
Through a thousand years  
They call out to me  
They say it's only once… in a life we love  
I can hear the soft bells ring _

_(only once my dear)_

_Through a thousand years  
They call out to me_

_They say it's only once… _

_(only once my dear) _

_in a life we love_

_Now I've had that honor too  
_

As she remembered her reason… no, _reasons_ to fight…

_I'm talking about it (babe)  
'Cause you've been teasing me  
I'm talking about it  
'Cause you are bad right through _

_Stay with me, I shall want no other love  
Stay with me another love another lie  
Stay with me and I shall want no other love  
But you were touching and teasing  
_

_Ooooh You were holding my hand  
Ooooh You were kissing my skin  
_

_Ooooh You were holding my hand  
Ooooh You were kissing my skin _

_Stay with me, I shall want no other love  
Stay with me another love another lie  
Stay with me, and I shall want no other love  
And You were talking so sweet  
But you were touching and teasing _

To live… To build a better world…

_Stay with me  
Trees are whispering_

_Stay with me  
Only once my dear  
_

_Stay with me  
Trees are whispering_

_But you were touching and teasing_

_Stay with me  
Trees are whispering_

_Stay with me _

_Only once my dear_

_Stay with me  
Trees are whispering  
_

_Stay with me _

_Only once my dear_

Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable.

_Whispers in Blindness__  
Artist: Ace of Base_

--

Also…

Somewhere in the Cosmos…

A speck sat inside themselves…

Sorrowful and disgusted with an eons-long path taken… by their race.

Hoping for redemption…

Deciding to forge a new path…

By praying for a miracle.

TBC


	9. Chapter 7: Arakoma

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Chapter 7 Arakoma

Earlier…

6-23-2007  
TP Base 1  
Mesa Verde National Park  
Montezuma County, CO  
1545 hrs

Nick and Monique stood on the roof pad, Monique swept the tarmac for signs of danger…

"Darlin' I think it's safe…" he grinned as she gave him that look, the same one Cap would when he'd take his safety for granted. "ok, ok."

A figure stepped out of the elevator. Nan.

Mon sized her up. Lean, athletic, on the right side of 50. Red hair…

And that _grin_.

_Kim's_ grin.

Nothing was out of place on her SHIELD uniform.

"All clear Sir." Monique stated as Nan was followed by her retinue…

Si Fan and former agents of the Yellow Claw.

They checked the area and nodded.

'Hmmm. Loyal to her. Wonder how that happened.' Nick thought as he glanced at Mon out of the corner of his eye. She winked.

"Good to see you Nick." Nan said as they walked towards the elevator. "Congratulations on becoming Nick's ADC." She said to Monique with a warm smile.

Monique blushed, "Thank you Ma'am…" stunned that she'd take time to speak to her… 'The first woman to complete BUDS… Gave the Shaolin monks a run for their money… She's worked with Cap…' she mused as Nan and Fury made small talk. 'The Claw _respects_ her… Viper ran from her when she, Cap and the Avengers battled the Serpent Society in the '60's and she…?!' "Excuse me?"

"If it's ok with Nick I'd like to see what the fuss is about. Care for a session on the Mat? I'm sure that our Practice Room's dinky compared to SHIELD's, but we've made do."

"Uh, Sir?" Mon asked with the same glint that she had for Club Banana red tag sales.

Nick chewed his cigar… "Ahh go ahead." He said as he stepped out of the elevator with half of Nan's guards. "Go easy on 'er Kid." He said to them with a grin.

As the door shut both ladies thought, 'Oh I will!'

--

An amazed Monique stood before Nan in their version of the Practice Room, bo in hand. She watched as the scenery changed before their eyes…

'The Xmen helped design this place! It'd be awesome to practice in a place like this… Ron's armor is the CPU…!'

"Shall I use Ms Goble's favorite scene for an arena?" Miranda, Ron's armor asked.

"We'll skip that one for later Mira. Surprise us with something else." Nan said. "Sheila likes fighting Juggernaut and Gladiator in the Blue Area of The Moon…"

"Your teachers at the Academy told me you're the best they've seen. Almost as good as Cap, Kim, Nick," Nan grinned as she checked out what the Academy called their most promising agent. "Or the Rook." 'She's got some spunk! Just shaky…'

'Juggernaut!' she mentally squeaked. "Oh I don't know about that." She said as she twirled the bo as she flipped backward. "I just try to do my best." 'She's tough… Ron said she's better than Kim!'

"Forget what you've heard about me." Nan told her. "That was then. Kim's come into her own, as should you." She appeared before a stunned Monique and shattered her bo in two with an iron palm strike that turned into an Omote Gakku on Mon's right hand…

Mon rolled out of the hold as bones creaked, swept the floor with Dragon Lashes Tail…

'Good…' Nan rolled with it, leaped up, and came down with an Axe kick…

Mon rolled out from under… flicked her left hand under Nan's heel and teased her kick forward, causing her to slide into a split on the mat…

"Now!" 'Better…' Nan said to the room. Scenery changed!

Finally they landed.

They were fighting in Cydonia, next to the Face on Mars!

Mon relaxed and listened with her body…

She rolled back as Nan exploded out of the sand and cartwheeled after her, a storm of fury. "Fight back!" Nan howled as Monique slithered away… 'Ok kid.'

'SHIT!' she thought as Nan clipped her 'Gonna have to…'

Monique let go as Nan hit her with a softened Sand Palm to her sternum…

She ran through all the data…

Blood was shunted to the bruised area, healing was sped up…

Nan slid Chi Crosses the Stream at Mon… 'C'mon!'

She emptied out and saw it. "Girlfriend you're TTFW!" she said as she weaved through Nan's blows and pinched her cheek with a grin.

"TTFW?" Nan.

"Too Tough For Words!" Monique spat back.

"Really?!" Nan Smile.

"Absolutely!" Mon grin.

Nan frowned then got a wicked grin…

She surged forward, flipped Mon with Lion Rolls Ball…

Mon weaved away afraid to hurt the woman…

"Fight Me DAMMIT! _Forget I'm Kim's grandmother!_" she growled. "Forget what you've read. TAKE CHARGE!"

Ebony Flint.

Mon ran towards Nan, kicked up a cloud of sand and flew through feet first!

Nan exhaled and softened up as she felt her boots connect, then slid around the blow sending a hook kick towards the back of Mon's head…

Mon ducked her head, blocked the kick with Arakoma…

Nan reached _in_ and let her chi _flow_ as she tagged Mon's calf with a left Hsing-I wind kick.

Mon hit Nan with a Crane's Beak on her left thigh as she spun, rolled away!

The ebony beauty grinned through the pain as they flowed back and forth…

Mon realized what she needed to do as she…

Tapped into what her folks…

Ron…

Kim…

And Nan, believed in.

_Herself_.

She heard…saw…felt…Nan's moves _before they happened!_

Mon didn't pay attention to Nan as she smiled at her…

The halves of the shattered bo flew into their hands as they traded, parried, and gained measure…

She didn't pay attention as she matched Nan blow for blow, kick for kick…

All was forgotten except Monique Jenkins attempts to wipe Nan Possible's grin off her face…

The tides turned until…

"Time!" rang out as the Room's settings returned to normal.

Nan and Monique bowed, slid their links on…

Their eyes locked as they heard the reports flow in…

'Very good.' Nan sent to Monique. 'Another time?'

'Thanks ma'am. I'd like that!' she sent back. ('Wow! She's a 'path! Gotta tell K!')

"When you get back, we'll do Versace." Nan said.

"You're on." She said.

They double-timed their way to Destiny.

TBC


	10. Chapter 8: Alchemy

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006

Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Chapter 8: Alchemy

6-23-2007  
The Experimental  
Cell Mechanics Laboratory  
Princeton Plainsboro Hospital  
Princeton, NJ  
1545 hrs

Lab equipment, the latest in SHIELD biochemical hardware sat around them humming along.

Anne Possible MD sat in awe of her husband… He'd managed to surprise her. Unfortunately it wasn't pleasant.

'At least Chase, Cameron, and Cuddy gave us some privacy…' she thought as she sat in shock…

"NO!" James Timothy Possible yelled. "I won't do it!" he frowned thinking of his misused research. "It's not natural!"

Anne swallowed her anger and coolly stared at James. "Hon… I want us to share as much as we can… for as lo…"

"NO, I said. Anne I'm TELLING you to FORGET _THIS_ line of research…" he roared.

"Don't you yell at me Mister." She snapped back with an angry smirk. "Besides…" she tossed an empty injection ampoule into his hands. "it's too late. There's only one dose left. Perfectly safe."

"_anne_…" he wept. "it's one thing when the kids… Kim and Ron chose to be this way… it was given to them by God… but this… this… isn't natural. Show folk do this…"

"And what The Skull has done is? Cap's show folk?" James flinched as she rose off her lab stool, eyes afury as she embraced her love. "James… I want us to enjoy life… and our children's lives as long as we can…" she leaned back and gazed into his eyes. "Don't you?"

"Yes… but I want to live… and die as we're sup… 'crink!'… to." He broke free. "I DO love you… but I won't."

Her eyes filled with tears. "jimmy…" she cried as he stood at the door, back to her.

"I love you too much to divorce you Anne." He sobbed. "The boys can make their choice when they're of age."

He left her… sobbing out their grief.

TBC


	11. Chapter 9a: Get Your Kicks On Route 66

Cestus Dea

By mkusenagi2

The story concept © 4-18-2006  
Nick Fury and other Marvel characters  
are © Marvel Comics.  
Kim Possible and other  
Disney characters are  
© Disney Co.

Chapter 9: Get Your Kicks… on Route 66  
Part 1

Rewind.

Stark, Rabbi K, and Xavier realizing that TP is in over their heads, start their search for The Skull's whereabouts.

Cain Marko, after thinking about Kim's faith in him, steps up… to pay a debt.

Al and his friends… sensing a change in the wind… Prepare.

And Sabertooth...

Well he's just Sabertooth.

Also...

One who has passed on…

Feels a pull…

The Essence prepares a soul…

One that has done much…

Selflessly.

They are gently guided back…

To their home…

To aid their Friends.

-

A song hits Billboard's top ten for weeks…

It's nicknamed 'Kim's Ballad'…

But to everyone else it's the 'Kim Possible Song.'

We know it as 'Call Me, Beep Me.'

-

Nick walked up to the conference room door. It slid open. What he saw gave him pause as he stepped through.

He _looked_...

Nick looked at the...

He'd seen this before at Project Pegasus...

But to see this _here_... and _know_ that the Lab Boys hadn't detected any changes...

He tried to look at... what he saw. The conference room... it was different. He, Kim, and Ron stood before _beings_. That is they stood on a platform that floated between realms... It started as a room lined with state of the art tech that rivaled SHIELD's, then the walls folded away, leaving them standing betwixt the Worlds! This was a blatant sign that what he'd seen between the lines in his reports on their activities wasn't even close to the truth...

Not when he was looking at something like this...

Something few beings have seen, much less kept their sanity...

Odin, Shiva, The Living Tribunal, Amora the Enchantress, Zeus, The Elder Gods, Gaea... to name a few...

Even Mephisto...

'Sat' in this room...

"Welcome Nicholas Fury." Odin said from his throne. "Our audience is almost complete. Pray be a bit more patient with us..."

"Sure." 'like I gotta choice...' he thought with a wry grin. "Glad ya made it Unc!" he heard from Ron as he took in his surroundings.

Kim leaned towards him "'Grats on the promotion Sir, Ron and I are _so_ proud. Or should I call you UN Field Marshal Fury." she whispered with a wink and a kiss to cheek.

The look he gave could frag Antarctica.

She stepped towards Ron and took his hand. They were suffused with a mild glow.

Ron and Kim smiled as they were infused with knowledge from the assembled. 'It's ok.' Fury _heard_. 'We're being _trained_ I guess you'd call it...' Kim sent.

"Ron..." Mephisto hissed. "You _must_ understand..." he frowned. "as one who begruges you for what you've achieved... as one i... _respect_, you must do your utmost to break him. In his present state The Skull is too powerful to... enter Hell... his essence is _pernicious_. He would twist my realm... _any_ mystic realm to his will."

'Mephisto respects Ron...' Nick thought. 'This is going to get interestin'... just like my days with the Howlers...'

"YOU HAVE NO CHOICE." the Living Tribunal said... The Tribunal. A being that was gigantic. Its visage, a head with three faces that floated over a golden body that had a blazing light in its chest.

Fury thought about the three faces, what Strange had told him they represented.

'Lessee... the visible face is Equity, the half covered one is Vengeance, an' the covered one is Necessity... uh oh... somethin's wrong... Equity wants to punch our ticket!'

"he always has a choice," Vengeance said.

"We must wash the Multiverse clean. Eliminate The Skull, all that were affected by his evil must perish." Necessity wailed. "We can reset things..."

"NO!" The Essence said. "I Am The-One-Above-All." it looked at Kim, Ron, and Fury, "They have earned the right to determine their fate. SO SAY I!"

"I agree." Amora said as she preened. "They are flawed...yet courageous."

"I will not kill him." Ron said. "There's been enough... of that." he looked at Kim and frowned. "I mean... _if there's no other way_... ok. But since we're trying to heal the Multiverse..."

She nodded and squeezed his hand in understanding.

"You Are As Valiant As The Ones That Went Before You." The Elder Gods said. "Time IS Of The Essence. Yet We Are Bound..."

"Due to Mahisasura's presence on your world we cannot pierce the veil that he hides behind without killing millions..." Zeus stated. "His blood is tightly wound with theirs. Such an event would poison us. What little belief that sustains us would vanish and cast us adrift long enough for him to ascend..."

"And in so doing we would be helpless to stop him as he conquered our realms..." The Vishanti said.

"He is far more a threat than even we..." The Ancient Ones murmured from their prisons of twisted spacetime.

Nick's eye narrowed.

"Ok youse mugs." Fury growled. "We've got a _war_ ta win. Sittin' around and discussin' it ain't gonna win it fer us... We gotta take the fight to 'im _yesterday!_"

Pin drop.

"Verily." someone said as they stepped forward to defuse tensions. "He speaks true." said Thor, God of Thunder. "We _must_ vanquish the foe."

"Guys. Trust the Ronman. I'll do my best not to let you down..." he looked at Kim and Nick. "_we'll do our best... I promise you._"

"So be it." The Essence said. They were gone.

Nick found himself and Team Possible seated at the meeting table. Before he could begin...

"Beep Beep beDeep!" chirped from the data ports in the table.

"Go Wade." Kim said.

"Hello Kim." Tony Stark said as a holofield clicked on over the table.

"Oh! Uh, hi Mr Stark! What's up?" she asked.

"Kim; Xavier, Rabbi K and I have been searching... no results as of yet. However the projects' on line. The Skull's stranglehold on the Third World's resources is now quietly a thing of the past..." Stark said.

"What project?" Fury asked.

"Great!" Kim said. "Ron had an idea." she said as she waved her hand through the field shrinking Stark and pulling up a rotating globe covered with glowing bands. Most of the bands were concentrated in the oceans.

Nick looked at Ron as Namor came on screen. "We've begun production..." he turned to Nick. "Hello Nick."

"Hi." muscled bunched in his jaw as he grit his teeth into his cigar. "What's goin' on?"

"Uh well..." Ron started. "I got to thinkin', what if we could use MrDrP's tech to mine the sea floor... The stuff's a 'living quantum dot alloy'... each crystal thingie's a machine and a Q-dot so... uh we can program it to do a bunch of things like..."

"Mine the sea floor," Nakasumi said as he flipped in. "without harming sealife or the environment in general. We have lowered the pollution index significantly with the process."

Nick grinned. "Ya castrated The Skull..." his eyes locked on Ron's. "just like Imi!"

"Nick. The network's 500 feet down on average and 100 microns thick. We're mindful of tectonic stressors. We've used it to ease pressure in key areas." Namor said.

"San Andreas." Xavier said.

He thought about the numbers... "That's a _lot_ of turf ta cover." his eye bugged. "WAIT a sec! You're tellin' me that you're... How much are you guys worth?" '_Thank God they're on our side_... gonna have ta lean on the diamond boys...'

"You don't want to know Sir." Kim and Ron chimed.

"We got full consent from Namor to begin operations last year, We've worked hard to honor the UN/Atlantean treaty." Ron said.

"Indeed they have." Namor said with a smile. "If only other Surface dwellers were as honorable."

Ron turned to Namor. "Have you talked to him yet?"

"Yes. He's interested. Doom has stated that he'll hon..."

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Fury roared.

"Ron set up a deal with Dr Doom, Sir. He gets a percentage of resources mined provided he helps us locate Sheila." Kim said. "The UN authorized the deal... they came to us actually."

"Good Job." Ron said to Namor as Kim explained things.

"How much?" 'Gonna have ta talk to the SecGen. At least they're trustworthy.'

"1 percent." Ron said. "It was my choice. We've taken precautions."

"We'll discuss that later." Fury growled. "How's this gonna fly?"

"Nick," Stark said. "We're selling the refined product to anyone that needs it on the UN's list of decent companies. In the meantime there'll be a whitewash as to what's going on."

"Even though the World market's taking a beating, the supply will keep things afloat as we convert the World economy from scarcity to plenty economics." Rabbi K said.

"So even though the companies are losing money due to market instability, they'll stay afloat due to an abundance of cheap resources..." Nick grunted.

"And the beauty is that we're makin' cash without hurtin' anybody. We sell the materials to the mining companies and they ensure the supply reaches its demand..." Ron said as they watched video feed from various depots worldwide.

"And if they want to overcharge..." Xavier said.

"We'll cut them off and tell the other mining firms." Kim said with a nasty glint in her eyes.

Nick mulled it over... and grinned. "Ok. If it was anyone else... I'd do somethin' about this. Since it's just you guys I'll wait and see."

"So Nick, what's it like being the UN's top cop?" Xavier asked.

An alarm chimed. Nick stood so fast he knocked his chair over.

"I guess we're gonna find out Chuck. Vegas is under attack..." He listened as reports poured in. "Sleepers." Serious Face glared at Kim and Fury. "You two stay put, yer back on the duty roster as of yesterday." they looked as if they wanted to protest, then grinned. "The less The Skull knows about ya the better. Chuck send what help ya can..." he shouted as he ran out. 'Wonder what they were grinnin' for?' he thought as he and Monique ran to the flight deck.

-

_Just a small town girl… livin' in a lonely world.  
She took the midnight train goin' anywhere…  
Just a city boy… born and raised in South Detroit.  
He took the midnight train goin' anywhere…_

_A singer in a smoky room  
A smell of wine and cheap perfume  
For a smile they can share the night  
It goes on and on and on and on_

_Strangers waiting, up and down the boulevard  
Their shadows searching in the night  
Streetlight people, living just to find emotion  
Hiding, somewhere in the night_

_Working hard to get my fill,  
Everybody wants a thrill  
Payin' anything to roll the dice,  
Just one more time  
Some will win, some will lose  
Some were born to sing the blues  
Oh, the movie never ends  
It goes on and on and on and on_

_(chorus)_

_Don't stop believin'  
Hold on to the feelin'  
Streetlight people _

_Don't Stop Believin'  
Journey_

TBC


End file.
